Wednesday, 19 March 2014

Tricky to say for the unwary, the names of Luck and Flaw were once the enfants terribles of British TV shocking, outraging, horrifying and, let's admit it, delighting the nation with their Spitting Image shows, in which scarily life-like celebrity puppets with uncannily sound-alike voices were seen generally behaving badly and taking the p*** out of royalty, politics and popular culture.

The latex caricatures by Roger Law and Peter Fluck (seen left among some of their early creations) soon became a beloved (and in certain quarters loathed and feared) institution that combined the knock-about politically incorrect humour of the Punch and Judy show with a three-dimensional realisation of the kind of savage satire and vitriolic humour popular with the British across several centuries of political cartoonists and social lampoonery from Gilray, Rowlandson and Hogarth to Ralph Steadman and Gerald Scarfe.

To celebrate three decades of Luck and Flaw's irreverent partnership, The Cartoon Museumhas an superb new exhibition –– Spitting Image: From Start to Finish...

On show are cartoons, puppets and the superb models that Luck and Flaw created for many leading magazines and journals at the time and featuring Her Maj...

HM's third child, Prince Andrew posed naked as a Playgirl centre-fold and proudly displaying a couple of pounds of Cumberland sausage...

Former Labour Party leader, Neil Kinnock as Pinocchio with his wife, Glenys as Jiminy Cricket...

Monday, 17 March 2014

I arise todayThrough a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity,Through a belief in the Threeness,Through confession of the Oneness Of the Creator of creation. I arise today Through the strength of Christ's birth and His baptism, Through the strength of His crucifixion and His burial, Through the strength of His resurrection and His ascension,Through the strength of His descent for the judgment of doom.I arise todayThrough the strength of the love of cherubim,In obedience of angels,In service of archangels,In the hope of resurrection to meet with reward,In the pyarers of patriarchs, In preachings of the apostles,In faiths of confessors,In innocence of virgins,In deeds of righteous men. I arise todayThrough the strength of heaven; Light of the sun,Splendor of fire,Speed of lightning,Swiftness of the wind,Depth of the sea, Stability of the earth,Firmness of the rock. I arise todayThrough God's strength to pilot me;God's might to uphold me, God's wisdom to guide me, God's eye to look before me, God's ear to hear me, God's word to speak for me, God's hand to guard me, God's way to lie before me, God's shield to protect me,God's hosts to save me From snares of the devil, From temptations of vices, From every one who desires me ill, Afar and anear, Alone or in a multitude. I summon today all these powers between me and evil,Against every cruel merciless power that opposes my body and soul, Against incantations of false prophets,Against black laws of pagandom,Against false laws of heretics,Against craft of idolatry, Against spells of women and smiths and wizards,Against every knowledge that corrupts man's body and soul. Christ shield me today Against poison, against burning, Against drowning, against wounding,So that reward may come to me in abundance.Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me,Christ in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me, Christ on my right, Christ on my left, Christ when I lie down, Christ when I sit down, Christ in the heart of every man who thinks of me, Christ in the mouth of every man who speaks of me, Christ in the eye that sees me, Christ in the ear that hears me. I arise todayThrough a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity,Through a belief in the Threeness,Through a confession of the OnenessOf the Creator of creationSt. Patrick (ca. 377)

I arise today
Through the strength of heaven;
Light of the sun,
Splendor of fire,
Speed of lightning,
Swiftness of the wind,
Depth of the sea,
Stability of the earth,
Firmness of the rock.

I arise today
Through God's strength to pilot me;
God's might to uphold me,
God's wisdom to guide me,
God's eye to look before me,
God's ear to hear me,
God's word to speak for me,
God's hand to guard me,
God's way to lie before me,
God's shield to protect me,
God's hosts to save me
Afar and anear,
Alone or in a mulitude.

Christ shield me today
Against wounding
Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me,
Christ in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
Christ on my right, Christ on my left,
Christ when I lie down, Christ when I sit down,
Christ in the heart of everyone who thinks of me,
Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me,
Christ in the eye that sees me,
Christ in the ear that hears me.

I arise today
Through the strength of heaven;
Light of the sun,
Splendor of fire,
Speed of lightning,
Swiftness of the wind,
Depth of the sea,
Stability of the earth,
Firmness of the rock.

I arise today
Through God's strength to pilot me;
God's might to uphold me,
God's wisdom to guide me,
God's eye to look before me,
God's ear to hear me,
God's word to speak for me,
God's hand to guard me,
God's way to lie before me,
God's shield to protect me,
God's hosts to save me
Afar and anear,
Alone or in a mulitude.

Christ shield me today
Against wounding
Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me,
Christ in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
Christ on my right, Christ on my left,
Christ when I lie down, Christ when I sit down,
Christ in the heart of everyone who thinks of me,
Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me,
Christ in the eye that sees me,
Christ in the ear that hears me.

I arise today
Through the strength of heaven;
Light of the sun,
Splendor of fire,
Speed of lightning,
Swiftness of the wind,
Depth of the sea,
Stability of the earth,
Firmness of the rock.

I arise today
Through God's strength to pilot me;
God's might to uphold me,
God's wisdom to guide me,
God's eye to look before me,
God's ear to hear me,
God's word to speak for me,
God's hand to guard me,
God's way to lie before me,
God's shield to protect me,
God's hosts to save me
Afar and anear,
Alone or in a mulitude.

Christ shield me today
Against wounding
Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me,
Christ in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
Christ on my right, Christ on my left,
Christ when I lie down, Christ when I sit down,
Christ in the heart of everyone who thinks of me,
Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me,
Christ in the eye that sees me,
Christ in the ear that hears me.

I arise today
Through the strength of heaven;
Light of the sun,
Splendor of fire,
Speed of lightning,
Swiftness of the wind,
Depth of the sea,
Stability of the earth,
Firmness of the rock.

I arise today
Through God's strength to pilot me;
God's might to uphold me,
God's wisdom to guide me,
God's eye to look before me,
God's ear to hear me,
God's word to speak for me,
God's hand to guard me,
God's way to lie before me,
God's shield to protect me,
God's hosts to save me
Afar and anear,
Alone or in a mulitude.

Christ shield me today
Against wounding
Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me,
Christ in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
Christ on my right, Christ on my left,
Christ when I lie down, Christ when I sit down,
Christ in the heart of everyone who thinks of me,
Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me,
Christ in the eye that sees me,
Christ in the ear that hears me.

Sunday, 9 March 2014

Before e-mail, young readers, there was something just called 'mail' –– letters, written by hand (and later by typewriter) and delivered by personal courier (and later by a government agency). Now, unless you are reasonably old, it may be difficult to believe in such a weird-sounding and obviously antiquated means of communication, but not only did it actually worked and led to the art of letter writing...

Within these covers are a collection of famous (and, occasionally, infamous) Men and Women of Letters – Queens, Presidents, film stars, authors, musicians and artists – writing to their admirers, enemies, lovers, and children and, in so doing, reveal something unique about their famous selves or offer life insights that are more than worthy of consideration...

The letters are not just quoted, almost all are reproduced: elegantly penned, neatly typed or erratically scribbled on hotel, airline or exercise book paper.

I began noting down my favourites but the list just kept growing, however, special gems include...

* Gandhi writing to Hitler pleading with him to avoid a war – intercepted by British intelligence, the letter was never delivered and, days later, Germany invaded Poland...

* Captain Robert Scott's last words home from the frozen wastes of Antarctica

* Charles Schulz responding to a young reader of his Peanuts strips asking the cartoonist to get rid of a new character, Charlotte Braun, briefly introduced in 1955: "I am taking your suggestion regarding Charlotte Braun and will
eventually discard her... Remember, however, that you and
your friends will have the death of an innocent child on your
conscience. Are you prepared to accept such responsibility?" The accompanying sketch shows Miss Braun literally getting the 'chop'...

* Eight-year-old Virginia O'Hanlon's letter to the New York Sun asking if it were true – as her school friends had told her – that there was no such person as Santa Claus together with veteran newsman, Frances Pharcellus Church's famous reply beginning: "Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus... He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist...."

* A heart-breaking suicide note from Virginia Woolf to her husband,
Leonard, on her second, successful, attempt to drown herself...

* Katherine Hepburn writing to Spencer Tracy – 18 years after his death...

* A blistering letter from Kurt Vonnegut to the head teacher of a school where copies of his book Slaughterhouse-Five had been burned in the school furnace...

* A young girl's letter to would-be President Abraham Lincoln suggesting he would stand a better chance of getting elected if he grew whiskers ("...all the ladies like whiskers") and honest Abe's reply: "As to the whiskers, having never worn any, do you not think people would
call it a piece of silly affectation if I were to begin it now?" History shows he, nevertheless, took the advice...

* Mary Stuart writing to King Henry III of France on February 8th, 1587, just six hours before she knelt before her executioner...

*The letter that led to the foiling of the Gunpowder Plot...

* The tragic SOS telegram from the sinking Titanic...

* Seven-year old Amy who, inspired by Roald Dahl's The BFG, sent the author a bottle containing one of her dreams (a concoction of oil, coloured water and sparkle) and received this perfect reply:

* Mario Puzo begging Marlon Brando to consider the role of Vito Corleone in the film of The Godfather...

* Alec Guinness writing to a friend and complaining about the rubbish script he was being given as Obi-Wan Kenobi in Star Wars and mentioning co-star, "Tennyson Ford – Ellison – Harrison Ford - ever heard of him?"

* A chilling memo from William Safire to H R Haldeman with the text of the Presidential broadcast in the event of the 1969 Apollo 11 moon landing ending in disaster with the non-recovery of Armstrong and Aldrin...

* Molecular biologist Francis Crick writing to his twelve-year-old son to explain the discovery of the double-helix structure of DNA...

I am also delighted that the book includes a letter I received forty years ago this year in response to a far letter sent to the American Sci-Fi/Fantasy writer, Ray Bradbury, that began a precious friendship that lasted until Ray's death in 2012...

Shaun Usher's Letters of Note is a veritable treasury of wit and wisdom interlaced with deeply moving testimonies to the indomitable human spiritand a book to which you will return again and again. The British edition can be purchased from Amazon.co.uk and the US edition fromAmazon.com